Process for treating pulp for making paper and like materials.



H. ARLEDTERJ PROCESS FOR TREATING PULP FOR MAKING PAPER AND LIKE MATERIALS.

APPLICATION FILED IULY 25| I9l0.

- Patented Sept. 21, 1915.

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[1V VEN T OR WITNESSES Q46 I I A llorney HERMAN ARLEDTER, 0F FRODSHAM, ENGLAND.

PROCESS FOR TREATING PULP FOR MAKING: PAPER AND LIKE MATERIALS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 21, 1915.

Application filed July 25, 1910. Serial N0. 573,7641.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that T, HERMAN ARLEDTER, a subject of the Emperor of Austria-Hungary, residing in Frodsham, in the county of Chester, in the Kingdom of England, have 1nvented certain new and useful Improvements in lhocesses for Treating Pulp for Making Paper and like Materials, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements 1n the treatment of pulp used in the manufac ture of paper, paste board and other like materials.

By my invention 1 effect the beating, disintegrating, washing, bleaching and mixing of the raw materials used in the manufacture of paper and the like, and where it is desired, dyeing, weighting and other processes, the whole being conducted in a hermitically sealed vessel under pressure or under vacuum in the following manner.

My experimental apparatus is set forth in the accompanying drawings.

ln-these A is a vessel somewhat egg shaped, made strong enough to stand the pressure or vacuum. It has an inlet pipe B and numerous smaller inlet pipes C C for chemicals and the like, also inlets for gases, steam, or the like D, supplied of course with suitable pipes. Connected with pipe C is a vacuum pump lV, whereby a high vacuum can be maintained in chamber A, while connected with pipe D is a hydraulic pump X for pumping in water at a pressure of from 1000 to 2000 pounds to the square inch. The construction of these two pumps forms no part of my invention, and I have, therefore, shown then only diagrammatically. One or more vessels, not shown above this, in any convenient position, are a connected with pipes to the openings C at the top so as to supply chemicals. The lower part of A has a steam jacket E supplied by the steam pipes F.

.G is a cock by which the entire chamber can be cut ofi when desired.

H is a hydraulic pump connected with the passage 1 from the converting chamber A, and also at its outlet with the passages J.

K is an outlet fitted with a plug tap; L another outlet also fitted with a plug tap M, either of which could be used as desired, M being a three-way cock leading into the disintegrator N of the usual type, having a block of knives O at the bottom. As this disintegrator is hermetically closed by the cover P and therefore it is difficult to lift the disintegrator cylinder, ll form the block of knives O to slide and have a screw device Q below so as to force it up gradually toward the disintegrator. The disintegrator drives the stuff back into the chamber; A, a doctor or scraper R preventing the material from continuing on the surface of the disintegrator. S S are two girders for holding up the disintegrator and to these girders the screw device Q is applied.

The mode of action of the apparatus is as followsz-The material, say softened pulp and water is supplied to chamber A, it is pumped by the pump H through the disintegrator. At first the adjustable bedplate is at some distance from the revolving knives, but as the material becomes finer and more homogeneous, the adjustable block of knives are brought nearer and nearer to the revolving ones till they almost touch. The chemicals, pressure and vacuum are applied in the manner hereafter stated, by means of pumps X and W, respectively, and the process is watched through the sight-hole T, and also through another sight-hole in the manhole U, and at sight-holes at other points if desired. Observation glasses can also be placed at any convenient point. When the work is accomplished, the required cocks are turned and the pump drives or blows all the material off to where it is further operated upon.

It will be obvious that in thus describing my apparatus the chamber A canbe of-any conceivable shape, so that it is strong enough. Almost any form of disintegrator at present known that can be closed in can be used, instead of N and O, and the posi tions of the pipes can be widely altered. There can also be more than one circulating pump; but one-advantage of the herein described arrangement is that the outlet from the grinder or-disintegrator being directly into the chamber, A and the circulation pump being at the bottom, there is no place for lodgment, otherwise the pump could be placed at any other point. In some instances the steam jacket is not required, in others I may have an additional coil to heat the vessel A. It will be observed in this de-. scription that I use a circulating pump H. This is not absolutely necessary as many of the existing disintegrators also act as a pump, and where the disintegrator is, designed to act as a circulating pump it is not necessary to use the pump H, but the passage can be continuous from the converting chamber to the disintegrator; also where the pulp is already in such a state as not to require a disintegrator the disintegrator can be dispensed with, and a circulating pump only used.

In carrying out my process, I usually mix the pulp.in an ordinary beater or mixer, and suck it into the chamber A by means of the vacuum, the sizing and coloring matter being added as required by the pipes. As soon as the chamber A is filled to its full capacity or nearly so it is closed, .and the man-hole lid put on if not already in position. The disintegrator and propeller are now started, and the mass is circulated at a very high speed without any chance of air being drawn into the mass as always happens with existing beating engines. In the meantime as soon as the apparatus is filled, "acuum has been produced either by a pump \V .or other means, the gases being drawn off at the top. Theimmediate effect of such a vacuum within the mass is the abstraction of the air and other gases, some of these latter being produced by chemical reactions from the interstices and pores of the pulp, but in these instances as before it gets saturated with water and chemicals and accelerates the hydration of the pulp to avery considerable extent also intensifying the chemical action upon the pulp which in existing processes is much retarded. through the presence of air and gases. Through the impossibility of air being drawn into the mass by the disintegrator, the usual frothing seen on the paper machines is entirely avoided. Furthermore the air having been expelled previous to the drying, it enables the fibers of the pulp to knit together better and the finished paper consequently is stronger and more pliable. The mass is alternately treated under vacuum and under pressure, the "latter by means of pump X. The action of the pressure on the pulp fibers is most beneficial, the pressure combined with the rise of temperature tending to open out the fibers more readily. The constantly. increasing pressure drives the sizes and colors into the pores and interstices of the fiber, which have 211- ready been cleared of gases by being previously treated with vacuum and-thus further increasing the physical and chemical actions and the result is a perfect sizing, coloring or weighting, the materials being less likely to wash away after being fixed and precipitated with alum. Other chemicals can be used in place of alum. If heat be required during the circulation of the mass,

this is effected by means of the outer coil and jacket, or by direct steam passed in. As soon as the mass has been subjected sufficiently long to the treatment under vacuum, the pressure is produced within the mass,

either by forcing more water in or by raising the temperature of the contents either terial the circulating pipe is closed and the,

whole mass is forced 0r pumped out through the emptying pipe through the stuff chests from which it is removed for use.

The action of the. pressure on the pulp is to bring about anextremely intimate contact between the chemicals, colors sizes and the fiber, It also .when weighting is required greatly assists the deposit of the weighting materials in the pores of the fiber, as the liquid is forced into these pores and the interstices or knotty particles which might have escaped the action of vacuum alone. By this means a far more rapid disassociation is efiected than a simple mechanical action could possibly bring about, while on account of the swelling up of the materials the knotted particles are less likely to escape the disintegrating blades. In the case of incrusted fibers as in mechanical wood pulp these incrustations are rapidly broken down under the vacuum, and subsequentpressure laying bare the cellulose to mechanical and chemical actionsso oxygen. carbonic acid, or other gases. alcohol, ether, light oils, spirits, bisulfid of carbon, acetone, formaldehyde and the like, and their retention during the time of mixing and beating in the mass is made possible and consequently their physical or chemical action is assured. All easily volatile sub-v stances or volatile parts of substances can be extracted from the apparatus during or after the treating process,'and can be recovered by condensation, absorption in Water or other solvents or by compression. The mechanical pulp can be changed into chemical pulp by extracting the resinous incrustations w1th ammonia or other alkali or alkaline salt.

This'inventi'on of mine if worked under a vacuum or pressure in pulp working machinery can be applied to'nearly all existing beating machines.

Among the advantages that are expected to be derived from this invention are the following-First, saving in time of beating; second, cheapeuing of the sizing process; third, the possibility of using a larger percentage of filling materials without weakening the strength of the finished paper or board; fourth, the utilization of inferior qualities of pulp for better class papers, as for instance mechanical pulp, where previously only chemicalpulp had been used; fifth, larger quantities can be treated in one operation without material increase in the driving power; sixth, the improvement in the quality of the paper with a given class of material; seventh, absence of cloudiness and unevenness caused by air bubbles and untreated batches; eighth, less breakage and consequent waste on the paper machine, and ninth, the converting of mechanical pulp, into chemical pulp or cellulose in the same apparatus and at the same time that the beating is effected.

I declare that what I claim is 1. The improvement in the process of treating pulp for use in the manufacture of paper and the like, which consists in beating or disintegrating the raw materials in a closed space submitted alternately to pressure and vacuum.

2. The improvement in the treatment of pulp for making semi-liquid paper-pulp, which consists in disintegrating the raw material; passing the same through a chamber under alternate pressure and vacuum; and adding chemicals in said chamber, whereby the material is converted wholly or partially from mechanical pulp into semi-liquid cellulose pulp ready for the paper-making machine.

3. The improvement in the process of manufacturing paper and the like, which consists in beating or disintegrating the raw materials or mechanical pulp in a hermetically sealed space under alternate pressure and vacuum; giving the materials a circulating current; and at the same time adding bleaching materials.

4. The improvement in ,the process of reducing pulp to a semi-liquid condition for making paper or the like, which consists in heating or disintegrating the raw materials in a hermetically sealed space under alternate pressure, and vacuum, and adding materials for changing the color or hue of the paper simultaneously.

5. The improvement in the process of manufacturing semi-liquid pulp, which consists in treating mechanical pulp in a hermetically sealed space; adding raw materials and water requisite for obtaining the necessary color; adding sizing or Weighting materials while the stuff is still in the closed space and exposed to alternate pressure and vacuum; and beating or disintegrating the same, whereby a semi-liquid pulp is formed which in the ordinary paper-making machinery will be converted at once into colored, sized and weighted paper.

6. The improvement in the process of manufacturing paper and the like from mechanical pulp or the like, which consists in treating it in a hermetically sealed space under alternate pressure and vacuum, adding all the requisite materials for making the finished paper, and causing a continuous and rapid circulation through the hermetically sealed space substantially as described.

7. The improvement in the process of manufacturing semi-liquid paper pulp from mechanical pulp and the like, which consists in disintegrating the same in the presence of water and a Volatile solvent of the impuri ties contained in the pulp, in a hermetically sealed space.

8. The improvement in the process of manufacturing paper and the like from mechanical pulp or the like, which consists in treating it with water in a hermetically sealed space; disintegrating it in said space; and adding carbonic acid.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name this 16th day of July, 1910, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HERMAN ARLEDTER.

Witnesses:

RICHARD WILLIS WILLIAMS, H. WILLIAMS. 

